


Needs

by Joking611



Series: Cari'ssi'mi Drabbles [49]
Category: Mass Effect, Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: F/F, Fluff, little blue children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-14
Updated: 2017-08-14
Packaged: 2018-12-15 03:13:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11797251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Joking611/pseuds/Joking611
Summary: Shepard has needs. Aethyta thinks Shep and Liara are idiots.





	Needs

**Author's Note:**

> Challenge Yourself: A Month Of Fanfiction 2017
> 
> Friday 8/11's Prompt: Smut
> 
> Based on an idea from Daniscats!

Aethyta was surprised to find Shepard with one of the work details.

“Hey kid,” she greeted. “What are you doing out here?”

The human stepped away from where several maidens were leveling ground in preparation of additional construction. She drove the shovel she was holding into the dirt, and leaned against the handle. “Something wrong with getting my hands dirty?” She replied grumpily.

“Noooo…” Aethyta hesitated. Not that she didn’t like needling the human. Shepard had the sense of humor of a broke volus. She just preferred doing it from a position of strength. If Shepard was already pissed off, she wanted to know what caused the fire before she added fuel to it. Especially if she needed to do something about it. After all, as far as she was concerned, no one got to piss off Shepard but her.

Well OK, maybe Liara was allowed that privilege as well, but those two were so sickeningly sweet that she took it as her personal duty to keep Shepard from getting too full of herself. Especially now that they were finally going to give her a grandchild. You’d think she was the first father in Thessia’s history, parading Liara around like she’d had anything to do with it except show up.

“I’d think you’d be getting all the time in with Liara that you could, before the kid comes and you have to start sharing her.” She remembered those days with her kids. Not Liara of course, but the others.

“We’ll be busy, sure. All the more reason to do what I can now, before the baby comes and we aren’t getting any sleep.”

Aethyta just looked at her in confusion. “Not getting any sleep? You know I’m all for a healthy sex life, but I hate to tell you Shepard, the kid’s gonna take a least a little spring out of Liara’s step for a while.”

“I meant taking care of the baby, at least until she starts sleeping through the night.” Shepard’s reply was still on the terse side.

“Sleep through the… What the hell are you talking about Shepard? Why wouldn’t the baby sleep? What are you planning on doing with it?” For a moment Aethyta remembered that almost everything she knew about humans could be summed up in their drinking habits, the fact that she’d had to help keep Shepard out of Alliance “protective custody” after the war, and the behavior of the woman in front of her.

Shepard probably wasn’t the most archetypal example of humanity ever produced, Aethyta reflected.

“Don’t human children sleep, Shepard?” That was probably the easiest question, the safest question. Shepard loved to expound. All Aethyta had to do was endure the chatty human’s response for however long it took.

Shepard tilted her head in uncertainty. “Uh, yes? They just wake up a lot. Couple hours down, couple hours up, that sort of thing. And they cry. They cry when they’re hungry, cry when they’re tired, cry for attention. Sometimes they’ll cry for no reason.”

“That sounds fucking spectacular. Remind me not to invite any humans with children to the estate.” Aethyta shook her head. “No wonder most of the humans I know are always in a bad mood. You’re sleep deprived as a species.”

“They get over it after about a year or so. Until then, the parents spend a lot of time trying to figure out what the kid wants, so they can get some sleep.”

“Athame’s blessed blue ass,” Aethyta rolled her eyes. “No wonder you’re stressed. Your kid’s an asari, Shepard. She’s going to sleep all the time, and if she cries that means you fucked something up.”

“Fucked up how? Kids cry. Babies cry. That’s how they let you know they need something.”

“Asari kids _meld_ , dumbass. That’s how they let you know they need something. If you or Liara are holding her, and let me tell you one of you will be holding her almost all the time at the beginning, she’s gonna meld. She won’t be able to help it, especially not with her parents. If she’s hungry, needs comfort, wants to be changed, whatever, you’ll _know_ , you won’t have to figure it out.” She looked dumbfounded at Shepard. “Don’t you and Liara ever talk about this shit? We’re a communal species. You’ll be lucky if she stops sleeping in your bed before she’s twenty. Best to have another kid right away. It isn’t common, but it’s one solution. They’ll spend time with each other, give you and Liara a break.”

Shepard stared back open mouthed. “Twenty?” The word dropped from her lips.

Aethyta grinned. This was more fun than she’d hoped.

.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.

Her daughter was equally grumpy when Aethyta returned to the main estate. The matriarch had wound her way through hidden stairways, secret passages, and shielded doors to find the daughter who was now ignoring her.

“Sentry Omega is not to be left unmonitored. You are to remain on station until relieved by Agent 317.”

Aethyta shook her head. If hearing the Shadow Broker’s distorted voice come from her maiden daughter’s mouth had been disconcerting before, it was outright ridiculous hearing those commanding tones from Liara now that she was nearly twenty months pregnant.

“Agent 317 has been delayed,” came the response. Another asari, from the sound of the voice.

“Irrelevant.” The Shadow Broker tolerated no discussion. “Agent 317 will arrive before the end of the week.” A pause, then a seemingly begrudged “You shall be additionally compensated for your service.”

Surprise from the other voice now. ”Thank you, Broker. I will do everything that…”

Liara interrupted. “Performing your duty is enough. Shadow Broker out.”

The maiden swiveled in her chair, no longer able to spend the long days on her feet that had been commonplace since becoming the Shadow Broker. “Yes Father?”

Aethyta hitched a hip on the end of a row of monitors, drawing a disapproving look from Liara. The matriarch dismissed it, as she had so many looks before.

“I ran into Shepard out by the east gate. She was working with Seyia’s team on the new fabrication shops.”

“Shepard does like to stay busy,” Liara’s attention moved back and forth from Aethyta to her monitors.

“Well, at least the Council hasn’t tried to send her out on a mission in a bit,” Aethyta tried to broach the subject of parenting. “It’s good for her to stay close to home until the kid comes.”

Liara rubbed her bulging belly self-consciously. “We are both looking forward to the baby’s arrival.”

“By digging up rocks? It looked like Shepard was working herself into a frenzy.”

Now Liara looked away. “Shepard is having nightmares again. She never completely stopped, really. It helps her to exhaust herself so that she sleeps more soundly.”

“Has she talked to Iadri?” The House doctor had been chosen specifically for her eclectic range of specializations, psychiatry being among them.

“Not yet. We hoped it would not be necessary. This has happened before, in times of increased stress.” She rubbed her belly again. “I believe she is nervous about our impending parenthood.”

“I might have taken care of that.” Liara looked up at the disclosure, and Aethyta waved any comment away. “Doesn’t matter. You said this happened before?”

“Yes, but in the past,” Aethyta thought Liara was starting to blush. “In the past, we were, I mean she was, that is, I could help her sleep.”

Liara was definitely blushing. “How the hell did I even get a grandkid?” She met Liara’s angry look with an eyeroll. “I get it. You two have sex, and she gets sleepy after. Congratulations for figuring out how fucking works.” She paused, “Wait, does that mean you stopped? What’s wrong?” Aethyta had no indication that there were problems between Liara and Shepard. If she missed something she was going to kick Alaya’s ass, and then her own.

“You know that I am very young to be having a child.”

“No shit, you’re practically a baby yourself.”

“I am one hundred and fourteen!”

“Yeah, yeah, and you don’t look a day over one hundred. Look, you know I’m the first person to tell you your business, but I mean it this time. If Shepard isn’t getting what she needs at home, there are literally billions of people out there who would give anything for a chance to be the reason she strays.”

Liara was indignant. “Shepard would _never_ ,” she wouldn’t even finish the sentence.

OK, Aethyta had to admit that Liara was likely correct about that one. The kid was as virtuous as they came. “Fine, you’re probably right. Doesn’t mean she wouldn’t be miserable.” She looked closely at Liara. “Is that what you want?”

“Of course not, Father. I am as frustrated as she is. However, because of my age and the drugs I have been prescribed to prevent me from rejecting my leg, Dr. Iadri has instructed that I am not to ‘overly exert’ myself over the last two months of my pregnancy.”

“And?”

“And nothing Father.” Liara crossed her arms. “Shepard and I will get through this, just like we have many other things.”

Aethyta ran her hand over her crest, not believing what she was hearing. How did these two even function? “So you aren’t doing this on purpose? She hasn’t pissed you off?”

“No, not lately at any rate,” Liara shook her head. “Absolutely not like you are thinking.”

“Then why aren’t you having sex?”

“Father,” Liara took as deep breath as she tried to remain calm. “I just explained…”

“You explained why you couldn’t exert yourself. You’re asari! I mean sure, it’s better when you bring the body along for the ride, but you don’t have to. All that shit’s in your head anyway.”

Liara was just staring.

“You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you?” Aethyta asked dejectedly.

Her daughter just shook her head slowly.

“Now I know there’s a goddess. I can’t imagine a more cosmic joke than having to have ‘the sex talk’ with my one hundred and fourteen year old, pregnant, daughter.” She ran her hand down her face. “You know you can sync nervous systems and remain entirely internal to your and your partner’s minds, yes?”

“Of course. Like in a memory meld. Shepard and I did something like that just before the last push on Earth”

 _‘Meaning you didn’t expect for one or both of you to survive.’_ Aethyta filed the thought for the moment, but it was interesting to know. “Exactly.” She tried to sound supportive. This might not be as hard as she thought. “So instead of accessing memories, you create one…”

.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.

It was late when Shepard came to bed, but Liara was waiting. She gave Sarah time to get comfortable, and then moved closer to the human. _Her_ human. She snuggled against her. “Hello there.”

Even in the dark she could feel her bondmate smile. Shepard turned, and kissed the top of her crest. “Hi.”

Liara pressed herself even more tightly against her, prompting Shepard to wrap an arm around her. An arm that quickly jerked away. “Hey, not that I’m complaining or anything, but I don’t know if I’m going to be able to keep to the ‘we’re not supposed to do anything’ plan if you aren’t going to wear anything to bed.”

Liara grabbed Shepard’s arm and replaced it before wrapping her arms around the human in return. “We _can_ do this.”

Sarah turned to face Liara, moving in to put her lips to the asari’s throat when she was intercepted. “Hold still, Shepard. You can hold me, but everything else will be in the meld.”

“But I thought…”

“I thought so too, but my father came to see me this afternoon, and she suggested that we try something different.” Liara buried her face in Shepard’s neck, and Sarah could feel the heat in Liara’s face against her throat.

“Your father?” Shepard tried to push herself away, but Liara held her fast.

“Sometimes she has good ideas, Shepard. Do you trust me?”

“With all that I am.”

“Good answer. Embrace eternity.”

.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.

Shepard walked confidently through Afterlife. She was alone,  but she wouldn’t be for long.

She looked good, and she knew it. Dressed all in black; denim pants, silk shirt tight enough to show off her definition, leather vest. Her hair slipped down her shoulders in waves, green eyes sharp. She scanned the room as she made her way towards her private table, looking for challenge, but knowing she probably wouldn’t find it. No one wanted to mess with the woman who killed the reapers. It was disappointing, really.

An anonymous maiden slipped a drink into her hand. She spared it a glance. Her usual, an Irish krogan. She sipped it thoughtfully. Hot and bold, just like she preferred it. Someone must have alerted them that her ship had docked for it to already be prepared. Not that she expected anything less. She was Commander Fucking Shepard. It had been years since she’d paid for a drink anywhere in the galaxy.

 _‘Aren’t you taking this a little far?’_ Sarah chuckled in her mind.

_*Hush*_

She rounded the far end of the bar, and saw that her table was empty. Of course it was, her name embossed on the side. She didn’t come here often, but one never knew when the Savior of the Galaxy was going to pay Afterlife a visit.

She slid into the booth, unbuttoning the top of her shirt in concession to the heat of the room. Another drink was placed on the table, the distraction giving a dancer time to step up and grasp the pole there.

Their eyes locked. She was young, sensuous. Shepard knew asari, and this one couldn’t be much more than a hundred. She carried herself with the false demureness of a maiden, shy eyes belying a ravenous appetite in their mesmerizing blue.

The asari stated moving, a slow, undulating roll that went from her toes to her crest, presenting all of her body to Shepard, one centimeter at a time. Sarah finished her first drink as she opened another button.

The dancer was unlike any asari Shepard had ever seen. The girl was strong, limber, heartbreakingly beautiful, and for an asari, that was saying a great deal. She spun the pole slowly, never taking her eyes off Shepard’s as she slowly undressed. She tossed her garments a piece at a time with unerring accuracy, her various coverings slowly creating a soft pile of silken beauty in Shepard’s lap. She wrapped a leg over her head, bending down to the table, burying her face into the bowl of bury strips the staff had placed while Shepard’s attention was focused elsewhere. The maiden came up with one in her mouth, stretching forward to place it in the commander’s own.

Shepard sat back, chewing the appetizer as the maiden pulled herself back to the pole, cupping her breasts for Shepard’s inspection, as if Shepard hadn’t been staring already. Once she was back against the pole, she slid down it’s length ending on her knees in front of the commander. She crawled forward, reaching Shepard, capturing her lips in her own. When Shepard kissed back, she lowered herself onto the commander’s lap and ran her hands up and down the human’s body.

Sarah broke for air, looking down at the space between them. Her shirt was completely open now, and the maiden wore, well a rather mischievous smile. She lifted the asari off her, standing herself as she quickly calculated the shortest path to the private rooms the bar provided for VIPs.

Then she was moving at a brisk pace, pulling the maiden silently behind her, the sound of her bare feet unnoticeable in the noise of the bar. Her eyes flicked upward and caught Aria’s gaze. The ruler of Omega raised her glass in salute. Shepard nodded in return, remembering when they had liberated Omega. When Aria had grabbed her, pulled her strongly to her, crushing her lips against her own. Shepard had wanted to pull away, but the matriarch’s power was intoxicating, she’d been lost in the moment, she'd wanted to be lost in the moment…

.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.

Vertigo overcame her as the meld ended, and she was suddenly in bed with Liara. No, falling from the bed with Liara, as the maiden had pushed her out of it.

“That was _not_ acceptable, Shepard.”

She looked up from the floor. “That wasn’t my fault. I had no idea…”

“It was _your_ fantasy, Shepard.”

“And you looked amazing!”

Liara turned away. “I think you should sleep in the other suite tonight.”

Shepard knew better to cross an angry asari bondmate, especially when they were pregnant. Few humans had.

Still, she couldn’t resist. “We are going to do this again though, right?”

“Tomorrow you’re the dancer.” Liara threw a pillow at her.


End file.
